This is the last day of fast. I have 2 more hours to go and feel safe in saying I made it through. This has been the best fast ever for me. I am more proud of this than I am of the 74 pounds I've lost this past 6 months. I feel God has bestowed upon me a pure heart like unto a pearl.
Today was the first time I had cravings after as I woke up from a dream about ice cream. I prayed and thanked God for reminding me to remember Him. Then I Tapped it out with EFT. I was blessed with an hour in my fairy garden this morning before the rain came and again got out about an hour ago to put out mulch. Being outside always puts me in a spiritual mood and the cravings subsist. This was a wonderful experience. A surprise to me- not as hard as I believed it to be. I thank God from the bottom of my heart for kicking the sugar addiction and being able to do this this year. This ends this blog for this year. I will leave it up for those interested in the Faith and want to know what it is like. And now before I head back outside I want to wish you :
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The Fire Within- That is what fasting can bring you. That love of God and of Baha'u'llah has been kindled and increasing everyday. Sometimes it even chokes me up. A wonderful morning combination meditation- Reiki this morning. Feeling inspired. Approaching my day today with unity, peace and what can I do on my mind.
I don't know what could be a more perfect quote than this for my fasting blog. I feel more and more I might be the only one reading this now anyway and this is my favorite quote of all. I haven't been able to get online to post the last few days, but as I meditated this morning I knew that I knew I needed to relax into this blogging thing. Just post when I can, not fret over it. If it was meant to be
I'd be able to get online. The same goes for my other 2 blogs. I felt like I just "had" to blog everyday. why? It's for me- to help me to enrich my spiritual fasting experience. I've been doing more "formal" praying lately, even before the fast. By formal I mean prayers written by other people- especially by The Bab, Baha'u'llah, and Abdu'l -Baha . But also by Marianne Williamson and other " Lay" people. Today I was reading about Prayer from a Baha'i perspective and came across this quote which really moved me- spoke to how I feel about it. " If one friend feels love for another, he will wish to say so. Though he knows that the friend is aware that he loves him, he will still wish to say so....God knows the wishes of all hearts. But the impulse to prayer is a natural one, springing from man's love to God. .....Prayer need not be in words, but rather in thought and attitude. But if this love and this desire are lacking, it is useless to try to force them. Words without love mean nothing. If a person talks to you as an unpleasant duty, with no love or pleasure in his meeting with you, do you wish to converse with him?" ~ Abdu'l-Baha I felt a boundless love for God all day today. I gave thanks and meditated and said the Greatest Name in my mind as I gardened all day today. I am so grateful For another answered prayer- that I be able to be in the garden all day. Of course after my morning rituals. It's almost midnight now. Yesterday was a goof fast day as well- communicating all day both online and phone- staying in touch and also a couple hours learning self hypnosis for weight loss. A happy camper foo to sleep.
It's hard to believe the day started so serenely with making this prayer picture up. It all started well- mu usual routine and then it went down right squirrely. Actually, come to think of it it started last night when My sister talked me into joining a new social network. Tech difficulties last night had me forgetting to post here and had me frustrated this afternoon. Then I managed to actually set up my site and post and I was very quickly thinking of how greed can ruin a good thing, My intention was to be able to share my thoughts with like minded people- all they seem to want is to sell either themselves, or their product - no real sharing of their own thoughts, feelings, but reposting other's art posters with the overuse of hashtags to get as many followers as possible.
Ah well= lesson learned. I am sorry I missed yesterday's post- it really was a wonderful day in my garden , with god answering prayers for me. Just another day- sweet, serene , lots of sleep. So hard getting up- was up till midnight reading. I kept hoping it would warm up so I could be outside- didn't happen. After candlelit prayers and I did manage to get this early dawn shot out the front door. Dawn is such a spiritual time of day. I love it. If inly I could just get my body on a new timetable. I tried to capture the rising sunrise to the left- but found you really can't look directly at the sun. IT is on the horizon and reflected into the prism sides. I built spent a lot of today calling loved ones I haven't talked to in ages and catching up.
While it really is true I have a new addy book to update- it turned out to be a great opener for calling. Time for nightly meditation and then there is some turkey in the fridge with my name on it. We just came in from grocery shopping and Penny is at my feet just looking at me like" OK, MOM where is the chicken? We always eat hot grilled chicken when you come in the door form the store." " Not this time, Penny. One more hour and then we will eat. "
I took my self out of temptations way, holding tight onto my 9 point star necklace and chanting " Baha'u'llah, Baha'u'llah, Baha'u'llah." Today was freezing, Again!! But I accept God wanted me to get some of that spiritual reading in today and that is what I did after my prayers, meditation and adding to my Baha'i Page. I finally finished " Falling Into Grace." That I put down long ago. I will be recommending it in my book section. Today was my first real test as far as the food fast goes. Although it really is a matter of habit more than physical hunger. I dozed a lot today-Getting up early is hard for me. My whole family are night owls- It's been hard trying to get to bed early and even when I am there by 10 PM - I'm usually still awake long after that. I was so sleepy this morning I just had a " health" muffin and tea for breakfast. Not really enough to carry me thru- and my tummy revolted as well. My friends already know I'm on a 7 month old new , healthy eating diet so I only eat 2 meals and one snack in 24 hrs anyway. But the timing is way different. I'm trying very hard to not eat again after my night meal. Not because of the fast but because I find myself overeating at dinner. Last night I was so full I ached- NOT GOOD! Yea- it was healthy food- but too much is too much. Well- I'm off to my space to meditate until dinner time. It is just 7:15 AM and already I feel compelled to share what just happened in my life by the Grace of God this morning. Above are my version of Reiki's Five Precepts. At the bottom will be other versions commonly used. It is on a picture I took decades ago of Applecross, Scotland . A place I spent three joyful days with my husband that are etched in my memory forever and bring a smile to my face when I see it. I had just said these before I did my daily self reiki and after first my dark breakfast, candle lit prayers and holy scripture reading when I looked out the window and saw more Daffodils blooming across the side parking driveway. Rain & cold are due in this afternoon-so I decided to go pick them. A big deal for me, because I haven't been able to walk there in a long time. But with my walker I made it and picked 9 flowers for my sacred space. That alone is God's Grace. As I came back across the carport I saw something that just 6 months ago would have thrown me into a rage and I would have let it " ruin " my day. But today I decided to let go and let God. I dealt with it calmly, with compassion and kindness. Then I arranged my nine daffodils and placed them in my sacred space. I picked up my " Prayers of Ecstasy " book and started where I'd left off. As you can see this writing fit right in with the 5 precepts. Walking hand in hand with Baha'u'llah and God this fast season.
" O peoples of the world! The Sun of Truth hath risen to illumine the whole earth, and to spiritualize the community of man. Laudable are the results and fruits thereof, abundant the holy evidences deriving from this grace. This is mercy unalloyed and purest bounty; it is light for the world and all it's peoples; it is harmony and fellowship, and love and solidarity; indeed it is compassion and unity, and the end of foreignness, it is the being at one, in complete dignity and freedom, with all on earth. The Blessed Beauty saith: " Ye are all the fruits of one tree, the leaves of one branch." Thus hath He likened this world of being to a single tree, and all its people to the leaves thereof, and the blossoms and fruits. It is needful for the bough to blossom, and leaf and fruit to flourish, and upon the interconnection of all aprts ot the world-tree, dependeth the flourishing of leaf and blossom, and the sweetness of the fruit. For this reason must all human beings powerfully sustain one another and seek for everlasting life; and for this reason must the lovers of God in this contingent world become the mercies and the blessings sent forth by that element King of the seen and unseen realms. Let them purify their sight and behold all humankind as leaves and blossoms and fruits of the tree of being. Let them at all times concern themselves with doing a kindly thing for one of their fellows, offering to someone love, consideration, thoughtful help. Let them see no one as their enemy, or as wishing them ill, but think of all humankind as their friends; regarding the alien as an intimate, the stranger as a companion, staying free of prejudice, drawing no lines. In this day, the one favored at the Threshold of the Lord is he who handeth round the cup of faithfulness; who bestoweth , even upon his enemies, the jewel of bounty, and lendeth, even to his fallen oppressor, a helpful hand; it is he who will, even to the fiercest of his foes be a loving friend. These are the teachings of the Blessed Beauty, these are the counsels of the Most Great Name." ~ 'Abdu'l-Baha Meet Mrs . B.R. Cant , the large pink rose shrub behind the purple cone flowers. This was taken in'12. After 3 years of not pruning she is now so large she has taken over Penelope to the left, who is huge herself. I did my second Meditation of today under her limbs in the midst of pruning her. Yes she is so large I can sit on my " garden buddy" under her branches.
It is now after 8 PM and I came through another day of the fast a happy- hungry woman. I admit, I thought for a few seconds how I could call working with this monster size, half deadwood rose all afternoon I could call it " hard labor" and have some water. But then this calm came over me and I gazed thru her branches and saw lots of Jonquils of all sorts I hadn't seen in years. A close Baha'i friend of mine and I dug these up on a trip to special Daffodil fields at a old homestead in the country. As I saw them, heard the birds singing, a breeze on my face I just went into meditation instead of going in for water. After a rainy morning of my prayers and morning meditation, falling back asleep with Penny as I was I was reading, I sat down at my computer to add quotes and books to my Baha'i Page A Robin came up to me at the window, seeming to say" Come Out, Come out- did you notice? The rain has stopped, just like in The Secret Garden. I slipped into my slippers and went out on to the porch and sure enough it was clear and warm. What a wonderful gift from God on a fast day in the middle of record cold days! As I worked my way in on this huge ( 10' x 8' tall ) antique rose shrub I came to a tangle of large old dead limbs. I kept thinking about finding Baha'u'llah- the journey that led me there and the last 20 years as a Baha'i. Often over the years I've had to clear out a lot of " dead wood" from how I perceived different aspects of the faith. Sometimes When Penelope and Mrs. Cant entwine their limbs it beautiful- sometimes it just makes a mess. The same with my combining my past spiritual paths with my current one. I'd didn't finish with the rose- I'm still trying to figure out where to cut back- how much of what I think will be beautiful will actually prevent me from being able to weed underneath this summer and not be quite so beautiful. I also have lots of dead stuff that I need to haul over to the woods to compost down over time. Today I came to realize the same is true on my spiritual- Baha'i path. Even more clearly I see that this fast is helping me work at clearing and beautifying and strengthening my love of Baha'u'llah. I feel the quote I added today is appropriate here now. " ....as the sun and moon constitute the brightest and most prominent luminaries in the heavens , similarly in the heaven of the religion of God two shining orbs have been ordained-fasting and prayer... fasting is it's sun, prayer, it's moon." ~ Baha'u'llah I am a Baha'i. Once a year from sunset March 2nd to sunset March 20th Baha'is fast from food and drink from sunrise to sunset . There are exemptions , such as if you are traveling, ill, doing hard labor, pregnant or nursing , over 70, under 15 and a few others. I grew up Catholic and it reminds me of Lent. It ends on March 20th which this year is also the spring equinox. At the end of it is Naw-Ruz which means " New Year." A spiritual journey to the New Year. I've always thought of Spring as the true beginning of each year. " It is essentially a period of meditation and prayer, of spiritual recuperation, during which the believer must strive to make the necessary readjustments in his inner life, and reinvigorate the spiritual forces latent in his soul. It's significance and purpose are, therefore, fundamentally spiritual in character. Fasting is symbolic, and a reminder of abstinence from selfish and carnal desires." ~ Duane L. Herrmann I am living in the now these days, having let go of previous fast and how well I did on them. This year I learned that to succeed in endeavors that I've failed at in the past I need to do them in a new different way. That is why I am writing this blog through Naw-Ruz. I spent last night, the beginning of fast, preparing my home and life for this years fast. I now have on hand and know what my meals from sunset to sunrise will be. This year I weigh less on Naw -Ruz than I do today. I have the books I will be reading near the spaces I read and on my nook desktop. I have a Baha'i & Spiritual Music playlist on my mp3 player and computer. I have daily quotes and prayers like above that switch out as the wallpaper on my computer. I've also prepared the "sacred space" below. The picture is the resting place of The Bab ( The Gate) -Twin Manifestation with Baha'u'llah. If you want to learn about Them and the Baha'i Faith you can go to my garden website page on the Baha'i Faith (www.gingersflowergarden.com/MyBahaiFaith./) I have 2 of my prayer books: " Healing The Soul." and " Prayers of Ecstasy," a crystal that represents many faiths one God to me and a marriage gift plate with a candle added to the one I began with each day. This window it's in faces east. I see this when I open my eyes each day. I have often found joy watching the sunrise here as the birds sing. My intention is to, after I've eaten, pray and meditate here each morning as the sun rises. Today, we had cloud cover, but I was blessed with a Red Cardinal coming to perch and look in at me. He often does visit, but it was like he was was saying to me "Right On, Ginger! This is the way to begin your day." My way of giving during this fast is to add this blog to the above website and to add to the Baha'i page there. I am adding Prayers and Quotes like the one above. ( These will probably show up here as well. These are my own artistic creations using my personal photos.) You are welcome to copy and use them as you please. I am also creating the page: " My Favorite Baha'i Books."
I've put on my 9 point star necklace as a touchstone reminder as well. It is now almost an hour before sunset and time for my evening prayers and meditations. Yes, I am retired- such a blessing to have all day to invigorate my spiritual forces. I'd love to hear about your fasting, also answer any questions you might have. Just leave me a comment. |